BLACKBOOK release their debut album

The enigmatic Swiss-Dutch band BLACKBOOK has been steadily cranking out singles since 2018. This year, they finally collect those songs on their debut album, which is called Confessions of the Innocent. It’s out October 14, 2022.

Confessions of the Innocent includes 11 previously released singles, along with three new tracks. Among the album’s songs, you’ll find their debut single, “Love Is a Crime,” a buoyant demand for queer equality, and their 2020 single, “People Are Fake,” a bratty banger that calls everybody out (your fans, your friends, your favorite bands). It also includes their latest singles, “Minefield” and “My Beautiful Witch.”

Most of BLACKBOOK’s singles have appeared on my best-of-the-month lists, so this is a particularly strong collection of songs. Here’s what the press notes say about the album:

In their new debut album Confessions of the innocent, the Swiss-Dutch duo BLACKBOOK creates sound worlds full of emotions and intensity by combining the heart of 80s new wave with a modern synthpop soul, a fusion so intriguing that it keeps you hitting repeat over and over again!

The album holds catchy songs tackling topics from all aspects of life, such as the internal struggles of the mind palace to the ineffable truths of society! Love, shame, rebellion, change. This album showcases every topic with its perfect 80s/90s wave soundtrack.

Who is BLACKBOOK?

BLACKBOOK make crackling electropop with strong hints of ’80s sounds and melodies, filtered through a modern lens. One of the things I like best about their music is that their songs have something to say—they tackle crucial subject matter from love and shame to pandemic-era isolation and global resistance.

Not much is known about the musicians in the band. The mysterious duo doesn’t include their names in press notes, and they wear fencing masks in all their photos.

The release notes for Confessions of the Innocent say, “BLACKBOOK was founded by two well established artists of whom one part of the duo is responsible for many radio hits as well as for the title song to a successful Netflix series, and the other one keeps busy as a musician with projects that have been claiming the top of the charts in Europe.”

That said, it’s not hard to find their real names. According to the song credits on Spotify, BLACKBLOOK is Dutch singer Albert Den Dekker and Swiss producer Matthias Kräutli. Among their many projects, they are both members of the Swiss indie pop band My Name Is George. Their 2010 song “You Are Under Arrest” is the title track of Netflix’s cop show, “Under Arrest.”